Manchester City is a traditional club which has always been in the shadow of its big brother, Manchester United. The successes have been so-so throughout the years, but today Manchester City is the king of English football.
Tickets for home games can be bought on the internet or over the phone. Since Manchester City now has become a very popular team to watch, be prepared for the fact that tickets tend to be sold out way in advance. However, if you turn to a travel agent which specializes on football trips, you can get both single tickets and packaged football trips that include ticket, hotel and flights, or just ticket and hotel.
Manchester City was formed as Ardwich AFC in 1887, and became Manchester City in 1894. Up until the 2008/09 season, it was a bit of a struggle to be a fan of Manchester City, or The Citizens as the club is often called. At the end of the 90’s, the club was even down in the English third division. In August of 2008 the investment company Abu Dhabi United Group stepped in with a large sum of money, however, which gave the club brand new financial muscles. In the 2010/11 season, Manchester City qualified to play in Champions League and won the FA Cup. The 2011/12 season resulted in its first League title in 44 years.
Since the 1980’s Manchester has been world famous for its music scene. Everywhere in the city there’s clubs where you can listen to the latest music. With a bounty of music festivals the year around, many cultural attractions and excellent shopping, there is plenty to do in Manchester before and after the game.
Manchester City’s home stadium has many names. The official name is Etihad Stadium, but it is not uncommon to hear the names City of Manchester Stadium and Eastlands. Etihad Stadium replaced City’s old, venerable stadium called Maine Road ahead of the 2003/04 season.
Etihad Stadium is the newest stadium in England and it was built between 1999 and 2002. The spectator capacity is at 47,805, and so is the attendance record. The stadium cost just above 100 million pounds, pretty much making it a budget construction compared to other stadiums of the same class. The Etihad Stadium comes from the fact that Manchester City has made a sponsor deal with Etihad Airways.
Etihad Stadium has replaced Maine Road as the home stadium for Manchester City. Maine Road was the biggest stadium in England for a long time. The stadium was often called the Wembley of the North, since it for a long time could hold up towards 100,000 spectators.
Etihad Stadium wasn’t initially meant to be a football stadium. The city of Manchester tried to get the 2000 Summer Olympics, and the idea was to make the stadium for the inauguration ceremony and the athletics competitions. Sadly for Manchester, Sydney won the vote. The city then chose to build the stadium anyway since it could then host the 2002 Commonwealth Games. After these competitions the athletics tracks were removed in order to make the stadium usable for football.
Etihad Stadium lies in eastern Manchester, no more than three kilometers from central Manchester. You can easily reach it by several foot paths and lightly trafficked roads. From the Piccadilly Railway Station you only have to walk for 15 minutes. There are of course also several bus lines from central Manchester to Etihad Stadium. If you are driving you can take the A662 (Ashton New Road) east and make a turn when you see signs for “Sportcity”.
Etihad Stadium
FA Cup